Come Together
by walroose
Summary: England gives America some old records that mean more to his little brother than he could have ever imagined. Oneshot.


**I've had the idea for this oneshot for a couple weeks! Hope you enjoy it, though it's really nothing special, darlings!**

**Alas, I don't own Hetalia! But I can still dream, can't I?**

* * *

England stood, fidgeting, outside the door of America's office. He hoped he wouldn't be interrupting some vital work. Maybe he should come back another time… but then, remembering the other man's lazy tendencies, he decided to just push the door open without knocking. America probably wasn't doing anything _too_ important.

He walked in talking. "Here. I know that records are making a comeback, so, I thought you might want some of these old ones of mine." England blushed a little at how blunt he sounded, and held out the cardboard box in his arms.

America looked up from his work for a moment. "Just leave them on that chair. I'll look at them later, I'm pretty busy."

England carefully placed the heavy box on the chair in the corner and left without saying another word, not sticking around for a thank you which he wasn't expecting to receive anyways.

...

As soon as England closed the door again, America snapped his head up from the work he had been pretending to do and stared at the old, slightly beaten box. Curiosity gripped him and he nonchalantly crossed the room, acting as though he didn't much care, but was excitedly looking through the LPs a few seconds later.

England was right, vinyl _was_ hot right now, and America was looking forward to the chance to own some vintage, English albums. As he sorted through them, though, his heart sank slightly. He already had a lot of them, and others weren't in very good shape.

But one caught his eye; with a smile, he picked it up and whispered, "Now here's a gem. Remember this one, Arthur?" It was Abbey Road, America's favorite Beatles album. He used to have a copy, but he'd gotten rid of it along with most of his other albums when CDs became popular. He decided that this one was definitely worth keeping.

Satisfied with his find, America got ready for bed that night in a good mood. He was about to put his new record away with his others, but chose instead to listen to it first, to check the quality.

He placed it on the turntable that he'd only recently dug out of the storage room and felt a gentle smile lift his features at the notes he knew so well. He yawned as he took off his glasses for the night and sank back into bed. His eyes closed and he hummed along to several songs before the comforting, familiar music soothed him to sleep.

…

"So, did you like any of the records I brought over the other day?" England sipped his tea, but continued watching America's face as he did so.

"Oh, yeah, dude, there was a copy of Abbey Road I like, _had_ to have!" America sucked down some soda through the straw sticking out of his King-sized cup. He wasn't a huge fan of England's favorite drink, so whenever he was invited over to tea, he brought his own preferred beverage.

"Ah, yes, to tell you the truth I was hesitant to get rid of that one, but I had more than one copy, so it felt stupid to hold on to it. Glad to hear you kept it, then."

"It's awesome, thanks for letting me have it, man. You know, the first night I had it, I fell asleep listening to it; I was out like a light before I even reached the end of the first side!" America laughed at himself good-naturedly.

"It's funny," England said with a grin after a few seconds of thought. "I used to listen to that record all the time, especially when I couldn't sleep, and it always put me right out, too."

"It did?" America mused, fiddling with his soda straw.

"Yes; every time."

…

What America hadn't told England was that he'd used the record _every_ night since he'd received it to help him fall asleep. It was so soothing and relaxing, he couldn't imagine how he'd slept without it and he'd already grown attached to it even before he knew how much it meant to the man he thought of as his big brother.

The night after his tea with England, America sat on the edge of his bed in his pajamas, turning the album over in his hands. Something inside him felt…warm when he thought of a younger England listening to the sounds the little bit of vinyl in his hands emitted. It was just a silly little record, but it made him extremely glad that he'd kept it. For no matter how much blood had been shed between the two in the past, America was still a fairly young nation that sometimes missed the man that had taken care of him when he'd been so small and vulnerable. And now, as he pictured England holding this very album in his hands, he felt extremely comforted.

_Arthur used to listen to this every night, too,_ he thought as he carefully removed the record from its sleeve. Gently, he brushed a few pieces of dust off and began playing it, singing along with "Come Together" as it started, and feeling extremely at peace.

It might have just been a record to someone else, but to America it was an invaluable connection to his brother across the Atlantic. It was a reminder of how much he loved and needed him. It was a piece of him he could always keep close, no matter what, and he was immensely happy to have it.

* * *

**Some of you are probably thinking that this story is really lame and cheesy, so I'm hesitant to admit where the inspiration came from, but it's from personal experience. After I 'permanently borrowed' (stole) my dad's Beatles records I began listening to Abbey Road to help me fall asleep. Then he told he also used to listen to the **_**same **__**exact record**_** for that same purpose, and I just felt this incredible connection. It was an amazing feeling of closeness to him, and I know that I'll always treasure that copy of Abbey Road. I tried to convey that feeling, hope you all could understand it, even just a bit!**

**Edit: 2/28/2013 Just some minor touching-up that was long overdue! xD**


End file.
